SAN JOSE, California (AFP) — Todd McLellan, an assistant coach for the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings, was named coach of the National Hockey League's San Jose Sharks here Thursday.

McLellan replaced Ron Wilson, who was fired May 12 after the Sharks failed to reach the NHL playoff semi-finals for the third year in a row despite winning a division title. Wilson was named coach at Toronto on Tuesday.

The Sharks, second in the NHL last season to Detroit with 108 points, tabbed a former minor-league and junior coach who spent the past three years working with the power-play lineup of the Red Wings, who beat Pittsburgh in the final.

"It's a very good feeling," McLellan said. "I think the Sharks have done a tremendous job."

McLellan, 40, masterminded an extra-man attack unit that was third in the NHL with a 20.7 percent scoring rate and led the league in 2006 with a 22.7 percent payoff rate on power plays.

The Red Wings have had more points over the past three seasons than any other team in the NHL with the Sharks third on that list. Now McLellan will be in charge of catching the team he helped keep on top.

"You don't get close to 50 wins for a number of years in a row without a lot of talent," McLellan said. "It's a matter of getting over the hump. There are some real parallels between the Red Wings and the Sharks."